A new study has found spending time outdoors in the sunshine could reduce the risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in children.
Sun exposure for even a short time can significantly reduce the risk of the disease, researchers revealed. The team found every 10 minutes of sun exposure reduces the risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease by close to 6 per cent.
"Taking children to play outside in the sun could be life-changing. It doesn't have to be all at the same time. But, we found children who were outside and exposed to the sun for an extra half hour a day in total, had a lower risk of developing IBD by almost 20 per cent," study author Robyn Lucas, from the ANU College of Health and Medicine, told a news portal.
The study also found lack of sun exposure increased the risk of IBD. "We already know that sunshine affects the immune system in ways that could decrease IBD -- but we don't know the exact pathways. But our research suggests that getting outside and into the sunshine is a good thing when it comes to preventing this terrible disease," the researchers are quoted as saying by a news portal.
More and more young children are suffering from inflammatory bowel disease. Intermittent diarrhoea, abdominal pain and inflammation are some of the extremely painful symptoms of the condition. Crohn's Disease and ulcerative colitis are the two types of IBD disorders that close t0 800, 000 people reportedly live with.
Researchers urge the public to get a daily dose of sunshine in order to prevent IBD. However, the team warns about being out for too long and to take precaution in order to not get sunburnt. The study's findings were originally published in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition.
Previous research has found a crucial connection between viruses and inflammatory bowel diseases. A team from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus primarily focused their investigation on viruses inhabiting bacteria, known as phages, in the intestine. "Phage numbers are elevated at the intestinal mucosal surface and increase in abundance during inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), suggesting that phages play an unidentified role in IBD," study author Duerkop told a news portal.
The findings could help scientists develop better treatment options. The study was originally published in the Nature Microbiology journal.